Fortune-altering top overall pick rests on ping-pong balls for four squads

Bella Belen (left) and Alyssa Solomon during their heydays as the top 1-2 punch in the UAAP for National U. —UAAP MEDIA

The winner of the sweepstakes for Alyssa Solomon, the consensus top overall pick in the coming PVL Rookie Draft, will be known on Monday when Capital1, Galeries Tower, ZUS Coffee and Choco Mucho put the fate of their respective franchises on ping pong balls at TV5 Media Center.

Set at 6:30 p.m., any of the four teams will get a fortune-changing pick in the prolific Solomon, the former National University star in the UAAP, with Capital1 having the highest chance with a 40-percent probability, followed by Galeries with 30, ZUS Coffee with 20, and first-time lottery team Choco Mucho with 10 percent.

Last year, the Solar Spikers only had a 30 percent chance and after luckily drawing the top overall pick, they turned it into Bella Belen, Solomon’s NU teammate and now the face of the Capital1 franchise.

And should Capital1 be second time lucky, it could own the best 1-2 punch ever to come out of the UAAP in years, which could come in handy with newly acquired Vanie Gandler and Erika Santos, the ex-Cignal standouts who found their way to the Solar Spikers’ camp.

The best setter in the pool, Lams Lamina, also an ex-NU star, is also a prospective lottery pick who could also come in handy for Capital1 with Belen, Gandler and Santos already making up the offense.

Solomon on Friday made the surprise announcement of entering the 2026 Draft Class following a Japan SV.League stint with powerhouse Osaka Marvelous and a historic silver-medal run with Alas Pilipinas in last year’s AVC Women’s Cup.

Her agent at Hustle and Groove, though, previously told the Inquirer that the 6-foot-1 opposite spiker isn’t closing her doors on overseas opportunities, with aspirants still allowed to withdraw from the proceedings until June 1.

Solomon could be the missing piece for Galeries, which drafted Jean Asis at No. 2 last year or even for the struggling teams like ZUS Coffee, which placed last in the All-Filipino after a runner-up finish in the Reinforced Conference, and Choco Mucho.

Besides Solomon and Lamina, University of Santo Tomas captain and two-time UAAP Best Libero Detdet Pepito and four-time UAAP Best Middle Blocker Niña Ytang from the University of the Philippines have already thrown their hats into the pool.

Also declaring for the draft are Far Eastern University setter Tin Ubaldo, UP’s Irah Jaboneta and Joan Monares, UST’s Jonah Perdido and Xyza Gula, Ateneo playmaker Taks Fujimoto and Adamson’s Barbie Jamili.

League commissioner Sherwin Malonzo will do the lottery, alongside a representative from the Games and Amusements Board.

Hours before the balls drop, the PVL will release the complete, approved list of draft applicants eligible for the mandatory Rookie Draft Combine, scheduled for May 28 to May 29 at the Gameville Ballpark in Mandaluyong City. INQ